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Indiscipline a concern for Stormers

Mon, 21 Apr 2014 20:29

Stormers coach Allister Coetzee admitted there is concern in the camp over a 'lack of discipline'.

The men from Cape Town conceded an astonishing 20 penalties, while two players were yellow carded - one during the game and another post-match - in their 18-3 win over the Lions at the weekend.

With a stated goal of less than 10 penalties per game, the 20 penalties and two yellow cards are not the standards they have set themselves.

The Stormers discipline was a contentious issue throughout the match, with hooker Deon Fourie being given a yellow card for foul play in the first half - when he charged into the back of a Lions player way off the ball.

And lock Michael Rhodes was issued with an off-field yellow card for a lifting tackle - an incident that took place while Fourie was off the field.

Had the match officials acted more firmly, it could have had catastrophic consequences - as they would have been down to 13 players at a crucial stage and leading just 6-0.

"It was definitely a discussion point," Coetzee told a media briefing at the team's training base, when asked about the high penalty count and the yellow cards.

"We know, according to our standards, conceding 20 penalties, as well as an on-field and off-field yellow card, it is definitely not what we stand for," the coach added.

He felt that some of the decisions could be debatable, but steered clear from using those as an excuse.

"We will be in touch with Stuart [Berry], who I rate as a referee," Coetzee said, adding: "I just need to give an explanation to the players.

"It is not about looking for excuses or to blame [somebody].

"The important aspect is to get better in terms of the decision making. I need to tell them [the players] how he [Berry] sees the picture and how he sees the picture.

"We know Stuart [Berry] will referee us again and we want to get it right. We want to work with Stuart."

The coach felt that indiscipline has never been part of their game, because they know that in a tighter game that will have a massive influence.

"My main job is to build a working relationship with referees and [South African referees boss] André Watson. We do have an open platform to discuss these things.

"At the end of the day I want to make sure we coach the right things and the players understand the law interpretation as the referees see it on the field.

"It [the high penalty count] is not something we are proud of and we want to get it right. Irrespective of who the referee is, we need to improve as a team."